I am not damning him.
I don't know if he can coach. Giving him 2 years from now provides a greater window to see if he is the one for our flag tilt.
How much better?
Enough to give him another 36 months?
You cannot go in with a 12 month extension at any stage next year. It would be a startling lack of faith.
I reiterate, 24 or 36 months will be given if he is re-signed during 2010.
And this is my point - give him his 4th year now, so that if he isn't the right coach for us he doesn't waste 5 or possibly 6 years of our time.
Which would be a possibility if we re-signed him in 2010 on half a year of misleading evidence.
Bruce, Green, McDonald getting 30 touches each and Brad Miller kicking 3 goals in tight wins against NM, Rich, Freo, WCE, and PA early next season do not excite me, but it would earn a 3-year contract extension for Bailey. However, it would prove that he was distracted from his stated goal of developing this team for a flag tilt.
He isn't above human fault, he will move toward self-preservation if the circumstances push him there.